I've Missed You
by PD31
Summary: Beck realises he wants Jade back, but he doesn't stop to consider her feelings. Heavy spoilers for Tori Fixes Beck and Jade.


**I've Missed You**

**Summary: **Beck realises he wants Jade back, but he doesn't stop to consider her feelings. Heavy spoilers for _Tori Fixes Beck and Jade_.

**Disclaimer:** I _still_ don't own Victorious, any of the episodes or any of the characters.

* * *

Jade put a dollar into the Wahoo Punch vending machine in the locker area of Hollywood Arts; she selected her drink and bent down to pick it up as the machine released it.

"Uh hello?" a boy called nervously behind her. She turned to him with an impatient look. "Excuse me Jade? I'm Braydon; from your history class"

The mean girl's expression said _get to the point_. He did. "You borrowed my notes; can I have them back now?" She smiled at him and he stuttered, "Ah… I could… Oh God I'm sorry," before turning and fleeing towards the relative sanctuary of one of the classrooms.

"Thanks Braydon," she called sweetly as she walked away from the machine with her drink, his notes and a smile. She walked past Tori and Beck without giving the pair a second look.

"Trina's pants actually exploded?" Beck was incredulous.

"Yeah, her zipper landed in some old lady's soup!" the half-Latina insisted.

"Hey Tori, hey Beck," Meredith greeted as she joined the duo, who greeted her in kind.

"So Beck, if you want I was thinking maybe we could hang out later?" she offered.

"Yeah, I'm busy later."

"Dude!" Tori objected.

He looked meaningfully at her and elaborated, "I have this big jar of coins and I have to count them."

"Oh ok," Meredith was disappointed but made to leave.

"Wait!" Tori called from behind the other brunette, trying to subtly push her closer to Beck, "what do you mean you have to count coins?"

"Oh you know," he shrugged, "I collected a lot of nickels and quarters and I have to count them."

"I should really get to class," Meredith commented. "Bye."

"I don't _actually_ have a jar of coins," Beck admitted.

"No!" Tori's tone was sarcastic.

"I can't hang out with Meredith."

"Why not? She's cute and she likes you," Tori pointed out. Beck shushed her with a meaningful look towards his former girlfriend, stood obliviously by her locker a few yards away from them, and hauled her into the trusty janitor's closet.

"Jade," Beck explained.

"You guys split months ago," Tori argued.

"Yes but when we _were_ together, Meredith and I were in a play together and it made Jade like _crazy_ jealous."

"Dude, you tried to kiss _me_ a few weeks ago and Jade thought we were on a date and she was cool with it. I seriously doubt she's going to care one way or the other," Tori pointed out reasonably. "Just ask out Meredith!"

"No," Beck said simply.

"So you're going to live the rest of your life scared of Jade?"

Beck looked at her uncomfortably.

"Fine," Tori groaned, "I will find _Jade_ a date so that you can go out with Meredith and she _definitely_ won't be jealous."

* * *

"No-n-n-no-no-no-no-de-no-no-no," André replied emphatically to Tori's request as they watched Jade rehearse on the Full Moon Jam stage.

"So you'll do it?"

The dreadlocked musician looked bewildered. "I am _not_ gonna ask Jade out on a date!"

"Oh come on, last year you had a huge crush on her," Tori reminded him before adding teasingly, "You liked her."

"And when I was three I liked my dinosaur underpants," he pointed out, causing the singer to pull a rather uncomfortable face at the thought. "Things change."

"Come on, Jade can be so much fun!" the girl insisted.

Right on cue the gothic girl screamed "NOT NOW!" as a couple of boys walked onto the stage with some equipment for the event. They dropped their cargo and fled amid mutterings of _Sorry Jade!_

"This is going to be tough," Tori admitted.

"Yep, the only way you're gonna get some guy to ask out Jade on a date is to pay him money."

"I doubt that," Tori disagreed dismissively before a shout came from the stage.

"SINJIN! Sync this monitor before I make a necklace out of your _ears_!"

The two friends traded uncomfortable looks. "A _lot_ of money," André reiterated.

Tori shook her head in disbelief; she felt it wouldn't come to _that_ but didn't press the issue as she and her friend headed back inside to be greeted by the sight of Cat and Robbie walking around together; the ventriloquist was holding a banana in the red-haired girl's ear.

"I'm not asking," Tori said after the odd pair had passed them.

"Smart," André agreed. "So about Jade…"

"Oh I think we should just leave her to it and persuade Beck to take Meredith out."

"I could always take Meredith out," the songsmith suggested. Tori shot him a look. "Hey, we could buy Beck a hamster?"

Beck came up to them later on during the day; he wore a determined expression on his face and seemed to be steeling his resolve.

"You know what? You were right Tori, I'm gonna take Meredith out to the Full Moon Jam."

"You're WHAT?" a familiar voice called from behind him and he literally jumped a few inches into the air.

"Jade, I was uh…" the actor trailed off.

"Oh I knew it, I knew it _two years ago _when you were in that awful play with her," she accused, waving her right index finger in his face.

"Hey I wrote that play," André complained.

"Oh Beck, let's rehearse our lines at my house, oh Beck I brought you some cupcakes," she put on an impersonation of the bubbly brunette.

"Meredith brings _everyone_ cupcakes," Beck pointed out impatiently. "Her father owns Frank's Cupcake Shop."

"Her _dad_ owns that shop?" Tori sounded impressed with the news.

"They're some legit cupcakes," André piped up.

"You know what?" Jade said calmly. "I don't care. Go out with Meredith; enjoy her cupcakes." She turned and left them alone.

* * *

"So, how's Meredith?" Tori asked as a frustrated-looking Beck made his way to her side and picked up a cup of punch. The Canadian-born was having a terrible time of it as the sweet girl continually agreed with him, to the point that it was irritating him massively. "_I have to go over there_," he had told his date, pointing to the drinks table before meeting up with his classmate.

"Meredith is nice – too nice," he complained before taking a deep, steadying breath. "I think I've learned something about myself. I think I like dating a girl who fights back, a girl who's got strong opinions."

"Why?" Tori was surprised by this revelation.

"Because it's not easy; easy's boring."

"Ok I get that. So, who's not boring?"

Right on cue André announced, in his capacity as MC, "Ok people. Let's heat things up for Jade West!"

Tori gave a side-long glance at Beck as he watched his ex-girlfriend take the stage.

The dark haired beauty wowed the crowd with her performance of _Listen to Me_. She strode confidently around the stage, taking full ownership of it as the power of her voice and the force of her personality and stage presence dominated proceedings. At one point she saw Beck walking closer and closer to the stage and eyed him evenly.

"_You push me, I push you back harder_," she sang, looking straight into his eyes as she did. He smiled and completed his trip to the foot of the stage as she sang the last notes.

The long-haired actor climbed onto the stage and the former couple walked up to one another slowly and tentatively.

"I've missed you," Beck said with a smile as he looked into her blue-green eyes.

"So what are you going to do about it?" the girl with purple hair extensions challenged seductively.

Beck walked right up to her and cupped her cheek with his hand as he moved in for a kiss. He found himself wincing in shock and pain and near collapsing as the gothic girl, far from reciprocating into a kiss, delivered a sharp knee to his groin. He gagged in eye-watering agony and doubled over, lifting his head to give her a questioning, astonished look.

"Did you _miss_ me when you were hitting on Tori and talking me down to her while trying to kiss her?" his ex-girlfriend spat at him; her microphone was still on, meaning that everyone present at the Full Moon Jam was able to enjoy the spectacle. "Or when some random bimbo was firing hundreds of text messages a day at you? Or when you told your friend that I was a freak? Or when _Meredith_ and her cupcakes came calling?"

"Jade…" he gasped before she cut him off.

"So now you can't get another girl you come crawling back – is that it? You think I'm _so_ desperate and would be _so_ grateful that I'll just melt into your arms? Well forget it!"

The dyed-black haired girl turned on her heel and stormed purposefully off stage. Beck's legs finally gave way and he contacted the stage with what, to his ex-girlfriend anyway, was a hugely satisfying thump, eliciting another collective gasp from those witnessing the incident. She turned to the knot of now terrified-looking boys stood backstage and smiled at them; while it was a genuine, and beautiful, smile it did nothing to alleviate their nervousness of what the gothic girl might do to them if they upset her.

"So boys, any of you want to take a girl out this weekend?" she asked huskily.

They looked to one another in a blend of bewilderment and trepidation before one of the senior class gathered the courage to pipe up, "Dinner at Karaoke Dokie? Tomorrow at eight?"

Jade dropped her smile, looked at him and took a few steps in his direction, her actions were more than enough for him to _really_ begin to wish he'd kept his mouth shut, before she smiled again at him.

"It's a date," she whispered knowingly and headed for the dressing room, smile still in place.


End file.
